Tagged with: ‘wyoming’

A professionally taken headshot, like the ones below of Jeff, show people that you care about the details, and how you appear to others. You don’t always get a second chance to make a first impression, so make sure you show yourself in your best possible light, and help yourself look as professional as possible, especially when you are likely to often be “meeting” people for the first time online these days. Getting yourself professional photographs is also a great way to celebrate yourself!

Many women say they feel their best during pregnancy but others struggle with health and body issues. Whether or not you love how you look, a professional photography session will make you feel beautiful and help you capture a special point in your life forever. Capture those emotions of what it felt like to be expecting so you can look back on them with fondness and remember what a unique and amazing experience it was. We were able to capture this for Lynette and Dave and give them photos they will be able to cherish forever.

Every now and then I do a shoot that I just completely connect with. It usually happens when my clients allow me the creative freedom to design a session for them. I had photographed Darrell and Jessica a few years back when they were on vacation in Jackson Hole. Jessica, being a budding photographer herself, and I connected and we had a blast at their first shoot. Fast forward to 2015 and the couple was coming back to Jackson for a vacation and photography workshop. I did a studio portrait session with Jessica and then we did a couples shoot with the two of them. Jessica called me in a bit of a panic before they flew to Jackson claiming that “she had nothing to wear and perhaps we should just cancel.” I absolutely LOVE it when people tell me they don’t have anything to wear. I told her to just turn up for her shoot and I would take it from there.

It was wild and windy on the scheduled shoot day…absolutely perfect and my favorite kind of weather for photos! I meet them at a cool old historical site in Grand Teton National Park called Cunningham Cabins fully equipped with a huge suite case with half of my closet…Leather jackets, wild rags and vintage wool blankets. We froze our butts off and had to keep getting back in the car every few min. to warm up but it was well worth it.

Looking back over my portrait shoots from last year (2015) I can absolutely say that this was my favorite shoot. These images make me say “I wish I had that picture of myself and my darling husband.”

Understandably, the thought of doing a boudoir or glamour session can be intimidating. I often do bridal fairs and wedding events and the responses that I get from women range vastly. Some are very excited and come rushing over to talk to me and others are completely put off by the thought of letting someone photograph them in their underwear or photograph them at all for that matter. I often hear from women that they don’t like photos of themselves or that they aren’t sexy and don’t know how to do any of the things that they see the other women in my images doing.

The general public has this terrible idea that if they were to walk into a photo studio to have their picture taken that they will be greeted by flashing lights, blowing fans and the expectation to work it like Tyra, Cindy, and Claudia. That idea couldn’t be further from the truth.

The reality is that a boudoir or glamour photo session is calm and relaxed. There are no flashes or big fans or photographers telling you to work it. In my studio, the lighting is all natural, we use a hair dryer for wind and I coach you into every pose telling you exactly what I want you to do with every part of your body. The truth is that a shoot for a birthday, Valentine’s or wedding gift often turns into a day of self-discovery, empowerment and self-acceptance. Women walk away from these shoots feeling proud, sexy, beautiful and strong.

Here are 4 reasons to book a photo shoot:

1. YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL NOW…JUST AS YOU ARE. We all have issues with our bodies no matter what size we may be. Never have I photographed a woman, that said to me “I absolutely love every single part of my body.” No matter if you are happy with the size that you are or if you believe you need to loose 150 pounds, we all have pieces and parts that we wish were a little bigger or a little smaller or a little less wrinkly or grey or more toned or longer or shorter. It seems to be part of our feminine nature to be dissatisfied with the body that we live in, but at some point it is important that we come to terms with the fact that we will never be perfect. 90% of the women that I photograph do not have 8% body fat, yet I constantly hear, “I’d love to do a shoot but I need to lose weight first.” The truth is that most of us will never lose those extra 10 pounds that we believe to be so offensive to the rest of the world and all of us are only getting older. Learning to accept that is a challenge and at some point we all need to make peace with ourselves. Having a photo session will help you to see yourself in a new and different light and give that extra boost of confidence that we could all use.

2. GOD DIDN’T MAKE A MISTAKE. As the incredible photographer, Sue Bryce, says: “You deserve to exist in photographs.” Women are natural givers because it is built into us to take care of children. We give and give and give and we often forget to give to ourselves.

Over the years I have photographed many family sessions. During those sessions I always take a few minutes to photograph each member of the family individually. Almost always, the mother will tell me that she doesn’t want photos of herself and that she just wants images of her kids and her husband. I tell her it’s not an option to not have them. At some point in time, we will all leave this world and when that day comes, the very first thing that your children and loved ones are going to want is photos of you. It is not a mistake or an accident that you are a daughter, a lover, a sister, a mother, a grandmother or a wife. The people in your life that you love deserve to have images of you. They do not care about your body size or if you had wrinkles or grey hair. They care that you exist. Your existence was not a mistake. Honor your existence.

3. YOU CAN LOOK LIKE “THEM” TOO. Over the years, the media has destroyed our perception of women and implanted in our brains what we “should” look like. We all have at least one or two photos of ourselves that we like. Those are the ones that we put as our profile picture or send out in our Christmas cards. But no iPhone photo can ever come close to making you look like what you see on TV and in magazines. The thing is that those women are normal-looking people and often when seen without manicured hair and makeup, in their sweats with no wind in their hair, nobody would guess that they could be celebrity material. Bring in a professional hair and makeup artist, a stylist and photographer and it’s makeover magic!

Well, I believe that every woman should get to have that experience and not just professional models. All of my photo shoots include hair, makeup and styling. It is such a cool thing to see a woman look in the mirror after they have been all done up and changed into a fantastic dress or sexy lingerie outfit. The response is almost always, “I didn’t know I could look like this!” We all have an amazing dress or neglige that we love but would never wear and a photo shoot is the perfect time to put it on! I believe that with the right team, every woman can have photographs that are magazine-worthy and that will make her feel as beautiful as any woman in the media.

4.CELEBRATE YOUR LIFE & RELATIONSHIPS. A photo session is also a great way to celebrate a milestone, an anniversary, a wedding, a holiday or any other life event that you want to be able to look back on and remember who you were and where you were at during that point in your life. What better way than to have beautiful images of yourself and your loved ones?

I love to photograph women one-on-one, but I love it even more when they come in with girlfriends, sisters, mothers, daughters and bridesmaids. There is no better ladies day out or way to celebrate your relationships than to visit the studio with the women you love, have a complete makeover, drink wine, eat chocolate, talk, laugh, love and have photographs taken of yourself (and a few with your clan) and then go out for a great dinner or night on the town. It’s always a whirlwind of laughter, love, smiles, beautiful clothes, fabulous shoes, things that sparkle and lot of loveliness.

A huge thanks goes out to all the people that were part of the journey- from clients to big planners, vendors, and friends! So excited for all the new clients and moments there are to be captured in 2015. Cheers!

Here are just a few highlights from there year I wanted to share with you. So much more to share so stay tuned!